


Precious

by Quiet_Cadence



Category: RWBY
Genre: Fluff and Humor, Gen, dragon!AU, just a dash of seriousness, light milk & cereal, light monochrome maybe, or bees schnees, original name for an unnamed character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:47:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24974068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quiet_Cadence/pseuds/Quiet_Cadence
Summary: The princess stolen! Jaune Arc, paladin of Goldsborough, has been tasked by the king to venture forth into the domain of two terrible dragons and rescue princess Weiss Schnee. Were it so easy.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 8





	Precious

**Author's Note:**

> Mildly beta'd by a good friend, who burned their pizza crust while doing so; draw from that what you will.

Rescue the stolen princess, they said.

Bring honor and riches to the village, they said. The king would surely reward them and forgive their transgressions.

_Yeah right._

All you have to do is slay dragons. Plural. _Alone._ The princess didn’t have just _one_ guarding the keep she was held in, _noooooo._ That would be too _easy_.

Oh and you have no choice, or you’re banished to the Grimm lands. Good luck.

He was going to need more than that; what was luck against two dragons? Maybe he should have taken the Grimm.

Jaune bit back a curse as the too-loose strap of his breastplate caught on the weathered iron of a neglected sconce and he almost slipped from his foothold. He was _so close_ to the tower balcony, why did everything always have to go wrong?

Winding the tethered rope around one hand, he carefully used the other to free himself. His armor fell back into place and the sword and shield slung over his back clanged against the smooth stone bricks. He froze, hardly daring to breathe. The half-armored paladin waited for the roar and searing heat of the sun that would be his last memory.

Several seconds of silence coaxed open Jaune’s tightly closed eyes. He saw the moon illuminating the wall he’d snuck over by cover of clouded twilight. The woodlands beyond peacefully chirped away, as though nothing was wrong. The stars shone merrily, as though he hadn’t just tempted the gods to smite him.

_Well,_ he thought ruefully, _maybe not the_ gods _gods, but they might as well be my gods now._ No being had power here but the mighty beasts who ruled the skies. He’d send a hundred prayers to Last Light and Crimson Reaper if he thought it would do any good.

Who was he kidding. He _had_ sent those prayers to the two dragons he was in the process of trying to sneak past. He’d prayed to every god he could think of, every rock and tree, every passing squirrel.

Jaune let another prayer to someone, somewhere leave his mouth as a fevered whisper and resumed his climb. There was only one illuminated opening in the central tower of the keep, and he was only a few arm-lengths from the balcony now.

He drove another crystal of rock dust into a crack between the bricks. He’d channelled his aura to activate one every time he needed a handhold, encasing the rope in rapidly formed stone. He wouldn’t be able to get the rope free again, but he wouldn’t need it. Once the princess was safely on the ground they’d just leave it and make a break for the wall.

If he made it to the princess.

Shaking his head to dismiss the negativity, he gathered himself before resuming his upward ascent. The last thing he needed was Grimm showing up and making things worse… Though they might distract the dragons…

_No._ He would not stoop to the level of trying to use the enemies of humanity. Legends told of dragons fighting alongside humans against the Grimm, paladins didn’t do such cowardly, traitorous things. He was a paladin. 

...who was sneaking into the castle rather than challenging his foe to honourable combat.

_Eh, run and live._

Besides, it was too much of a longshot. Too much randomness in what was already a hard enough task. He’d screw it up and be killed first, he could practically hear the singing of the angels that would guide him to the heavens.

…

No, Jaune could definitely hear angelic singing. A high, clear, unwavering melody that stilled his hands once again. He could happily spend the night simply listening to her voice drift through the window and catching the wind.

The stones to which he was anchored trembled. A low rumbling that shook his bones and froze his blood. _The dragons_ , Jaune realized, _they must have heard her song._

Galvanized by a strong desire to not be killed quite yet, he steeled himself and reached upwards towards the stone overhang and it’s iron fence. Pointedly ignoring the now rhythmic sound of impending doom, he tied the rope to one of the railings and pulled sharply. It held. He hauled himself up and over the iron bars, caring little for the racket his armor made against them.

The singing and the rumble both stopped, and he was immediately both saddened and relieved. Confused words that he couldn’t make out reached his ears, followed by the solitary sound of barren footsteps rapidly approaching him.

Jaune stood just as the curtains parted to reveal a bewildered face framed by long, pure white hair. He looked, realized his mouth was hanging open, and found he’d forgotten to breathe. He immediately attempted to correct himself all at once by closing his mouth and breathing in sharply, sucking his closed lips inward and almost inhaling his own tongue.

The woman before him yelped in surprise, and drew away before speaking. “Who-?!”

Rushing forwards and placing a leather-clad hand upon her mouth, Jaune shushed the princess. A small part of his mind realized that the king would likely remove said hand for doing so, but right now she just needed to be _quiet_.

“Are you _trying_ to get us killed?” He whisper-screamed at her, following her through the curtain in an effort to keep her mouth covered. “I’m here to res-”

The words stopped in his throat as he noticed his surroundings. He’d expected a small, drab stone room, with an air of melancholy and wistfulness. Maybe a cracked table with a single loaf of stale bread.

Before him he saw a well lit chamber that could only be described as decadent. And _massive_ , taking up the entire floor of the tower, he couldn’t even see a door out. Much of the wall was covered in what looked to be golden fur and feathers that faded into magical flame blown by a gentle, non-existent wind. There was a modestly sized table with two occupied chairs, and the rest of the floor was taken up by what looked to be a pure, solid, _huge_ ruby.

Nestled into the gemstone was a woman with long, fiery red hair who seemed to be trying to stand. Her emerald eyes wide with alarm and staring right at him. The other people in the room all wore similar expressions of shock. One woman with midnight black hair, feline ears, and an angry scar on her abdomen seemed the most cognizant. She had adopted a protective half crouch, seemingly ready to pounce. On _him._ Two others had stopped in the act of drinking something that let small curls of steam rise from the finely crafted cups.

Silence.

The princess grabbed his wrist and tore his hand away from her mouth. Before she could speak however, Jaune launched into overdrive.

“Okay so maybe there’s a lot more of you than just the princess—hi prin-your graceness I mean majesty—but I can work with this.” He felt the floor shake and sped up his speech. “The plan still works we can still use the rope to get out to the grounds so come on let’s go we don’t have a lot of time before one of the dragons shows up come _on!_ ”

Weiss, that was her name Jaune now remembered, looked at him seemingly scandalized. “I’ll be doing no such thing. Who are you?”

“Jaune Arc,” the boy said, straightening up and puffing out his chest, “short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Not the point. We need to get out of here.”

The wall moved.

Jaune blinked and stared at the golden wall. That couldn’t be right. Walls don’t move. But this one was. It was rippling as though it was _alive._ He stared in disbelief as it seemed to shake itself and un-tuck an ivory-taloned hand from within the firefeathers.

_Taloned hand_ . _Fire._ The pieces came crashing together in Jaune’s mind followed by a grim revelation. _I’m so dead._

The striking lilac eyes of Blinding Last Light, the sun dragon of the east, were piercing into his very soul. A low hum, or growl he couldn’t be sure, emanated from the majestic, _terrifying_ creature as it stared him down. A long, sinuous body clad in scales of woven gold ended in a downy tail. The feathers that covered it’s shoulders and ran down it’s back rippled as it moved; the flames at their tips waved wildly and gave the appearance of a mane of fire. Three thin but powerful legs flexed as the dragon rose gracefully to its feet.

Jaune stayed completely still. One move, and he knew one of the many deadly aspects of his foe would descend upon him with its full might and he’d be skewered. Or torn apart. Or roasted.

He decided none of those sounded great.

Then the giant ruby, larger than two horses, began to move as well.

_Definitely dead._

A faceted foreleg curled gently around the red-haired woman who hadn’t managed to stand, pulling her back down into the side of the ruby. Or, rather, the side of Crimson Quicksilver Reaper, the crystal dragon of the west. It’s skin was a strange combination of hard as stone yet yielding as silk. The flickering light shed by it’s dragon brethren and the various candles in the room broke across the deep red gemstone, scintillating through the flawless stone and causing it to glow softly. The creature’s previously hidden head turned to look at the paladin as well, it’s shining silver eyes narrowing on the blade in his hand. 

Jaune hadn’t even realized that he’d drawn his sword. The honed tip shook. He placed his second hand on the grip to steady himself, taking a shaky breath and an unsure step backwards.

“Oh.”

If his mind was functioning on any higher level than ‘I’m so dead,’ he may have regretted his choice of last words. As it was, he simply stood there staring. The occupants of the room stared back.

The golden dragon opened its mouth. To Jaune’s surprise, words, rather than a torrent of fire, came from the beast. Surprisingly soft spoken, deep, and distinctly feminine.

“Paladin. You’ve likely come driven by a lie.”

Jaune stayed silent, not trusting his tongue to respond coherently.

The dragon’s eyes flashed a dangerous shade of red, and she continued. “If you’ve come to destroy all we hold dear, I will oblige you and make your death quick.”

The crystal dragon to the left draped a diaphanous wing over the red-haired woman, who murmured something unintelligible and patted the creature’s wrist reassuringly. After another moment of tense silence, the Reaper spoke in a strangely high, again feminine voice.

“He keeps pointing that thing anywhere near _my_ Warrior and he won’t get a choice.” Her words had an edge to them, sharp and unyielding. “Scales of gold or scales of red, paladin. We both have claws, which would you prefer?”

“Ruby!”

The admonishment came from both the woman laying on the dragon’s—Ruby’s—side and Weiss, who had turned towards the pair and placed her hands on her hips. “You shouldn’t speak that way, it’s not like you.”

A grumble crackled forth from the red dragon. “Oh pardon me for being cranky, Ice Queen. I was having a lovely time cuddling and listening to your song, and he’s bumbled in here waving a sword about and threatening to take you all away. I think I’m justified in being mean right back.”

“‘Justified,’ big word for such a wittle dwagon, glad to see Blake is rubbing off on you.” Weiss scoffed.

The man sitting at the table placed a hand gently on Weiss’ shoulder and spoke with a soft Mistrali accent. “Come now, Weiss.” His bubbly tablemate, dressed all in pink, had foregone her drink and begun eating. She hummed happily to herself, seemingly content to let events unfold in favour of food.

Pouting, the princess grumbled something that sounded suspiciously like ‘uncouth dolt’ before walking over to the black haired faunus woman, taking her hand and coaxing her into a more relaxed state.

Ignoring the jab, Ruby looked at her fellow dragon. “Yang?”

Yang’s eyes hadn’t left Jaune, who hadn’t moved a muscle during the entire exchange. “Well, paladin? Fight, or flee?”

Jaune shook his head quickly. “I- I don’t want to fight.” He hated how quiet and shaken his voice was, but he was grateful it had worked at all.

“Then if you’d kindly put that toothpick away and stop making my family uncomfortable.” Yang’s response was harsh and uncompromising. “You are not welcome here.”

The pair sitting at the table stopped and snapped their gazes to Yang, eyes wide. The woman spoke first. “...Family?”

Weiss smiled, leaning into Yang and pulling the faunus with her.

The feathered dragon seemed to shuffle in embarrassment, her eyes suddenly very focused on anything but the one who’d addressed her. “I mean… yeah. I know you and Ren haven’t been here very long but… if you want? You don’t have to stay here any longer than you want you’re free to go you know that right? I mean-”

The rambling dragon was cut short and a blur of pink slammed into her flaming feathers and gave her a hug. Or what was at the very least a spirited attempt at one.

Ren joined her and gave Yang a much more muted, but still emphatic, token of affection. “Nora and I are beyond honored… _thank you._ ”

Jaune wasn’t sure he could take any more. None of this made any sense. Everything was upside down, some of it was sideways, and he was pretty sure that at least half of it was partially inside out. So his brain did the only reasonable thing available.

He laughed.

He dropped his sword to the floor.

He followed it and hit the stone, out cold.

* * *

Laughter woke Jaune. Laughter that sounded of joyful bells. His sisters were probably playing just outside again. Soreness invaded his mind and he grumbled, curling into the soft sheets. The hard edge of his half-plate pressed into his abdomen.

...Had he fallen asleep in his armor? That was odd. No wonder he was sore all over.

But why were the blankets so soft?

Frowning, the boy opened his eyes to find wells of ruby-wreathed quicksilver watching him.

Jaune screamed and leapt to his feet. The oh-so-soft sheets became impenetrable as they ensnared him and he crashed to the floor in a heap.

A thrumming laugh that sounded akin to the knapping of stone filled the room. “Please don’t faint again, I’d prefer to talk before you miss another sunrise.”

“Ruby, he’s terrified. I _told_ you that you didn’t need to come with me to check on him.”

“You didn’t need to check on him to begin with, Pyrrha. He was fine.”

“And if he’d woken alone in a strange room and decided to go wandering around our home? He seems to have a knack for trouble.”

Ruby sighed, lowering her head and gently butting it against Pyrrha’s side, being careful to avoid the cane. “You care far too much about people you’ve never met.”

Pyrrha laughed. “Says the one who saved me from a near certain death and took me in so that I might heal.”

If a red crystalline dragon could blush Ruby definitely did.

Jaune looked away from the two, suddenly feeling as though he was intruding on a private conversation. Between a... dragon... and the apparently injured human they were… protecting?

Yeah okay it didn’t make much more sense now than it did before.

Coughing awkwardly, he decided he might as well ask. “So… you’re like, nice dragons? O-or something?”

“We don’t go around sneaking into other people’s homes and threatening them, if that’s what you mean.” Ruby responded cooly. “We pride ourselves on being more polite than that.”

“B-but, you stole the princess! The king-”

“Your _king_ ,” Ruby spat, “thought us monsters. Savages. And tried to buy us by sacrificing his second daughter as a _slave_ .” Her faceted skin rippled with anger as she stared down the dumbfounded paladin. “Who is the savage? Who the monster? We protect her, while he _sold his own_ **_daughter!_ **”

The dragon’s voice turned sharper with every word. Jaune’s skin began to crawl as he heard the fury of an avalanche. He flinched and stepped back at the sound of shattering rock and impossible strength.

Pyrrha’s free hand found its way to the back of Ruby’s head, and her temper melted away as quickly as it had flared. Her eyes slipped closed, and a low, rhythmic rumble replaced angry words.

“Ruby and Yang, they seem to have a habit of collecting broken things.” Pyrrha’s voice was quiet. She smiled softly and continued her affectionate ministrations. “I was the first. Ruby found me on a battlefield, unable to walk and beaten to the ground with an arrow pointed to my heart. They brought me here, and allowed me to heal. I chose to stay, and I wouldn’t trade my place here for an entire kingdom.”

“Blake and Weiss were next. They came from opposite worlds but both ended up here. One fleeing in terror, one forced by others fear. With us they found peace. Ren and Nora sort of stumbled into our laps, but chose to stay in lieu of any home to return to.”

As if on queue, a knock sounded on the door, and Ren entered at Pyrrha’s behest. He bore a friendly smile and a small tray with a steaming bowl of what seemed to be some manner of stew or soup.

Jaune’s stomach growled, and Pyrrha’s laugh once again graced the room.

“Please, eat. You missed breakfast.”

Sitting on the bed he’d been given, Jaune nodded his thanks and dug in with little regard for propriety.

“You see, we’re all here by choice.” Pyrrha glanced at Ren and leaned against Ruby’s side as she spoke. “The outside world discarded us all, uncaring and cruel. Yang’s reputation scares away most who would do us harm. Here we are safe, we are warm, and we are happy. And because of that we will not be leaving with you.”

The paladin looked up, meeting kind emerald eyes.

“You are free to go, these two big ol’ softies won’t keep you here against your will unless you try to hurt one of us.”

Jaune blinked. It was a lot to absorb; benevolent dragons sheltering lost people rather than monsters who snatched people from their homes. The king… nah that wasn’t surprising considering the way he treated his subjects. _Why would his daughter be any different_. 

And he was ostensibly free to go. Pyrrha didn’t _seem_ to be a dishonest person, something about her just felt open. Genuine.

As he mulled over his thoughts, Ren and Pyrrha shared a look.

“We’ll leave you to it.” The other boy said. “If you would like to eat with the rest of us you’re welcome. If you wish to go home immediately, you’re welcome. All I’d ask is that you keep the details of what you found here… discrete.”

‘Go home.’ _Without_ the princess… he’d be banished for sure.

_I could go to another village_ , he supposed. And start from the bottom rung of the social ladder again.

Or…

Ren stepped out quietly, and Pyrrha followed him. Ruby lingered with her head through the door a moment longer.

“You’re not going to try to take them away… right?”

Her voice was strangely timid for a fantastically powerful creature of legend. Jaune smiled at her just as timidly, setting aside the tray of food for the moment.

“No… I like being alive.” He chuckled. “And this place isn’t quite the doom fortress the headman told me about. You all seem very happy. I’d hardly be much of a paladin if I came in and tried to break something like this apart.”

A smile. The silver of Ruby’s eyes even seemed to soften. “Good.” She hesitated, awkwardly. “I’ll uh, leave you to it. Yeah.”

The dragon made to withdraw, but Jaune threw a hand up before his brain caught up with his body. Pausing, Ruby cocked her head to the side inquisitively.

After several seconds of hasty consideration, the paladin spoke. “You said I’m free to go… am I free to stay?”

One elegantly knapped eyebrow rose. “You wish to stay here? You have a village to return to, family, friends.” Ruby waited a moment. “You also just fell through our window with a sword and gave everyone quite the fright. Why should we let you?”

Jaune gulped. “W-well, uhm. My family will be just fine; all of my sisters are more accomplished than me, better fighters, healers, thinkers. The heads of the village sent _me_ because… I’m the most expendable. The king demanded we rescue his daughter as a penalty for being a week late on the food tithe delivery. The only reason they didn’t come with me is because I gave them the slip before dawn. No reason for us all to die, right? Heh.”

“Coming back with no princess will just look like I didn’t try, and I’ll be banished. If I don’t come back—which lets face it nobody expects me to—the headman will report my failure to the baron, and the village will be forgiven.” He sighed. “I could wander as a sellsword I suppose, don’t think i’d make it for long though. Could take another vow and join the Huntsman, but that comes back to the ‘I don’t want to die’ thing. But if I stay here… I wouldn’t get in your way. I could be a guard. I have a lot of aura and I’m getting better with it every day.”

“I just don’t really have anywhere to go.”

Ruby considered him. “Your sisters, would they not come after you?”

“...If I’m honest they probably would. I could write them a scroll telling them I’m alright and that would mollify them.”

“You trust them to keep your secret? Even to your baron? Or your _king_?”

“On my life. My family prides themselves on being honorable… which okay I haven’t been a paragon of that, sneaking into your home and all… Sorry.”

The silence that followed stretched far longer than Jaune would have liked. His nervous fidgeting caught Ruby’s eye. After another couple moments, she spoke.

“If you betray my sister and I, if you bring any harm to our family, we will not hesitate to fight back.” Her voice was back to its impossibly hard edge. “You will lose. And I will not hesitate to destroy you myself. I love my Warrior, I love my sister, and I love our family—strange though it may seem. Am I clear?”

Jaune swallowed in a desperate effort to whet the desert his mouth had become. “Crystal.”

Barking a laugh, Ruby nodded. “Good. And as I’m sure you’ve noticed, we relieved you of your sword. We’ll be keeping it for the foreseeable future; you won’t be needing it.”

Nodding, as that was entirely reasonable, Jaune paused. “Actually, I have an idea for what to do with it…”

* * *

As the sun set over the edge of Goldsborough village, Saphron Cotta-Arc wrung her hands together in distress. Nearly an entire day had passed since Jaune had left the village. And of _course_ he’d taken that idiotic, suicidal quest. She’d hoped, obviously hopelessly, that he’d merely gone on a patrol through the forest just like he’d told them. Or something as equally toothless compared to what awaited him at that infernal keep. But as the day went on his lie became obvious. And the note they’d found had only made solidified that fear.

The sound of clinking armor drew her attention, and her heart sank further. “Kya… There’s nothing I can say to stop you from going after him, is there?”

Her sister, clothed in the rugged plate armor and the shield that bore the Arc family crest in her signature blue on her back, shook her head. “‘Fraid not, sis. I’m getting that idiot out of the fire he’s thrown himself into. I don’t give a rats ass what the king says. Let him name a champion if he cares so much; I’ll crush them.”

“You can’t take on the entire kingdom of knights he’d send… you know that.”

“Then I’ll fight the dragons and win. Or lose. But I’m not losing Jaune to this stupidity.”

Saphron’s throat tightened. “Kya don’t you _dare_ lose to those beasts.”

Kya met her gaze, her own eyes glistening ever so slightly. “I’ll do my best. But I have to go.”

The hug Saphron launched at her sister may have crushed her had she not been wearing solid steel. Kya stabbed her light lance into the ground and returned the affection. They remained there for probably longer than was proper, but neither could bring themselves to care. The world could have burned around them and they may have stayed exactly as they were. Not even-

“Reaper! The Reaper is coming!”

Okay maybe _that_ would break them apart. The panicked cries of townsfolk and the ringing of the bell caused Kya to step back and scan the skies. She saw the dragon of course, it was kind of hard to miss with the sunlight turning it into a crimson beacon. _Fitting_. It was far closer than she’d like. They had maybe ten seconds before it was on top of them.

The paladin shrugged her shield over her shoulder and hefted her lance. “Get everyone inside. That _includes_ you, before you try anything clever.”

Before Saphron could argue, Kya took off for the town center, bellowing at the top of her lungs for everyone to take cover. She tracked the oncoming dragon as it flew, noting with mild confusion that it wasn’t descending. It didn’t even seem to be slowing down.

_Perhaps its goal lies beyond us?_ Such an optimistic thought. She could only pray.

Crimson Reaper soared over the cowering village. It banked and flew in a lazy U-shape. A flash of silver metal, and it was leaving. Gliding gently back from whence it came. Back to its keep.

Letting out an incredulous gasp of relief that she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, Kya let the grip on her lance relax. She couldn’t begin to speculate on the motives of such a creature, but best not to tempt fate-

A sword flashed out of the sky and slammed into the ground at her feet, missing the paladin by only the length of its blade.

Kya jumped and nearly cried out before she took a closer look. Her blood turned to ice.

_That’s Jaune’s sword._ Dread seized her heart as she knelt by the blade. _No, nonono._

The scream she could feel building in her throat was arrested as she noticed a small, wax-sealed scroll affixed to the hilt with twine. The seal bore the Arc crest.

Nearly ripping the scroll in her haste, she opened it and read its short message.

_My dearest sisters,_

_I survived, but I will not be returning for some time. It would be best if you could pretend that I perished on this quest, that will satisfy the king and pay our debt to the crown. I am safe, I’ll contact you when I can. And under no circumstances can you come after me. I’ll explain at a later time._

_Your contrite brother,_

_Jaune_

_P.S. Sorry for lying… I just didn’t want anyone else to get hurt._

The words, written in Jaune’s distinctive scrawl, lifted the weight from Kya’s shoulders. Jaune was fine, he was safe, and she’d trust him until he could explain himself further. Schooling her face into a mask of grief, she hid the scroll in one of her gloves and moved to pull the sword from the soil.

She cried for him. She put on a show that would have made bards jealous. The heads of the village took her at her word that Jaune had perished, and the very real wails of the Arc sisters who were too young to keep a secret bolstered her story as much as they rent her heart asunder.

Kya volunteered for perimeter watch more often nowadays. She had faith that her silly little brother would return. And she was going to give him such a walloping when he did.

**Author's Note:**

> This was based off of a little idea a friend of mine had concerning Jaune trying to rescue a princess from a dragon who really didn't need all that much rescuing. I quite like the dragons herein described, and I can't draw for beans but I tried to do the concept justice.
> 
> 'Paladin' here meaning 'Knight with an unlocked Aura.'
> 
> One of Jaune's seven sisters, Kya (k-eye-ah), is named after the blue gemstone kyanite. In the course of writing this and coming up with her name, I decided that within my headcanon the Arc siblings will be named after the seven colors of the rainbow plus white. Ties into the Arc name, and Jaune is already yellow while Saphron is red. Now Kya makes blue.
> 
> Please do comment, tell me what you like, what you don't, your hopes and dreams if you're feeling fancy.
> 
> Thank you for reading; have a lovely day.


End file.
